THE WORKINGS OF the global economy are beyond ordinary levels of comprehension. The flow of money across international boundaries happens at the speed of light thousands of times a day. Conceptual currency, carried on cables, disappears from New York, appears in China, is split between branches in Beijing and Hong Kong, is converted and withdrawn. The whole system is held together by the even more abstract concepts of faith and agreement. People agree the green, paper rectangles have value, and they have faith the same agreement will be in place each day.
As a testament to the strength of the consensus, financial institutions exist seemingly everywhere. But with so many struggling to make a dollar, standing out can be difficult. The resulting efforts to do so are seen in the plethora of products that awaits each person who enters a bank—good news for the distributor seeking to make his own bread for the day.
Unsurprisingly, what often gets the green is the iconic color and recognizable symbols of money itself. When discussing promotional products for the sector, Sandee Coburn, sales coordinator at St. Louis-based Ariel Premium Supply, said, “Usually green items go to financial industries.” Similarly, as Ariel Premium Supply is most known for stress relievers, “the two most popular stress relievers are our dollar sign and the hundred-dollar bill,” she added.
Coburn further commented on financial institutions utilizing the mass appeal of sports. She said she was surprised to see pedometers, an item thought to target health-related promotions almost exclusively, become very popular among banks and financial institutions. “It’s just one of those things that we didn’t necessarily think in advance was going to have a big impact on the financial industry, but they do certainly get orders,” she revealed. Some organizations have put their logo on sports ball stress relievers that were available in stadiums and parks. With a strong correlation between the stadiums and financial institutions, capitalizing on sports themes may be an appropriate and underutilized avenue.
Selling to individual branches also can be worth a distributor’s while. Even among the largest financial chains, “there is still a level of autonomy in the different branches,” said Robert Hechler, president of Windbrella, Boynton Beach, Fla. Though there may be a centralized buyer, many branches can make their own recommendations and purchases as long as corporate policy is followed.
One important point brought up by Glenn Kupferman, CEO of Windbrella, is that any distributor already has a number of ties to financial markets. From personal accountants to the local banking branch, distributors interact with people who have made money into a profession on a daily basis. There is not one of these businesses that could not benefit from promotional products.
But despite the advantages of a compartmentalized selling strategy, certain trends are growing in popularity across the board. Glenn Kupferman, CEO of Windbrella, noted a “trend toward keeping logos slightly more subdued.” He and Hechler were quick to point out that this does not mean a trend away from branding. Instead, they said the logos represent a higher level of brand consciousness that relies on “classier” logos and imprints.
This is particularly important when it comes to umbrellas. Windbrella takes special care in logo placement and style. Kupferman said every Windbrella umbrella comes with an imprinted strap, which holds the umbrella closed as well as an imprinted cover and plastic dome on the handle. Hechler explained such imprints are very important when dealing with umbrella promotions because they keep the imprints visible when the umbrella is closed. “If you look at an umbrella, it spends 99 percent of its useful life sleeping,” said Hechler. “Embroidering that sheath that covers the umbrella and cutting the customer’s logo on a disc in the handle has constant advertising [ability] even when the umbrella is asleep.”
The world is getting smaller from the viewpoint of economics. Money is not bound by political boundaries, domestic banks are becoming more numerous and online banking opportunities are beginning to compete more fervently against their bricks-and-mortar counterparts. In this type of climate, differentiation is key—and be they umbrellas, stress relievers or simply of the color green, promotional products can ensure an end-buyer’s money speaks louder than words.
